


Mi Re Do

by pezzax



Series: It's Right, It's Good [2]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Seventeen doesn't exist, Alternate Universe - Youtubers, Fluff, Happy Birthday Chwe Hansol, Happy Birthday Lee Seokmin, Happy Ending, M/M, escape room
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-15 16:54:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29562195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pezzax/pseuds/pezzax
Summary: Today is his boyfriend's birthday and his best friend's birthday, so it should be a wonderful day, right? But instead, Seungkwan is having the worst day of his life, bar none. It has to get better....somehow!
Relationships: Boo Seungkwan/Chwe Hansol | Vernon, Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi & Lee Seokmin | DK
Series: It's Right, It's Good [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2171808
Kudos: 15





	1. Seungkwan

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger Warning: Already mentioned in the tags -- there is a kidnapping in this story. Please don't read if this will be a problem. However, the story is intended to be quite fluffy with a happy ending.
> 
> I wanted to get this completed in time to post the entire story for Vernon and DK's birthday, but it got larger than I'd initially planned. I therefore plan to post a chapter each week.
> 
> Note, this is loosely a sequel to my prior work, Beat Saber Boyfriend, but reading the prior work isn't required to enjoy this one. The only background information needed is that Seungkwan is a YouTuber who makes and plays Beat Saber maps. Hansol is a YouTuber who posts his indie songs. Soonyoung is Hansol's roommate. And Seokmin is Seungkwan's best friend, who is an esthetician.
> 
> Title and Series Title are from Seventeen's Do Re Mi.

Seungkwan is having the worst day of his life. Literally. No need for caveats, or prevarications, or any other sort of tempering of that thought. Today has just sucked beyond belief. 

Actually, it all sort of started last night. But at the time, he was basking in the absolute contentment of cuddling with his boyfriend on the couch, watching a drama together. He had his feet tucked under him and Hansol's arm was wrapped around his shoulders, pulling him in so that he was practically draped across the younger man. 

Exactly where he wanted to be. 

He was getting sleepy, ready to head to bed to get even more comfortably draped across his boyfriend, but was determined to stay awake until midnight so he would be able to tell Hansol 'Happy Birthday' the moment the day began. They'd still had an hour and fifty minutes to go. 

He'd been so relaxed, so warm and happy, that he hadn't bothered with his usual brain to mouth filter. _And, yes, Lee Chan, he does have one, thank you very much, even if it often seems to let more through than most people's filters._ He was pretty sure his eyes had closed, involuntarily, when he mumbled the thoughts that had been tumbling through his head for several days now. "Next Friday is the six month anniversary of the day we met...our first date. We should do something to celebrate."

The almost imperceptible stiffening of Hansol's body beneath him had been the only indication that he'd said something wrong, because his response had been, "Yeah, okay." Hansol had even reached over and pulled one of Seungkwan's hands into his free one, rubbing his thumb idly along the fingernail of Seungkwan's pinky finger. But then he'd added nonchalantly - much too nonchalantly for it to be a coincidence - "Soonyoung mentioned that he ran into you having lunch with your mom and sisters today. I didn't know they were coming into town."

It all felt like a normal conversation. Nothing to see here. Not the goddamn thirteen car pileup of a wreck that was suddenly screeching through Seungkwan's head. He was completely awake after those few sentences. Completely guarded too. Because those two topics were the very reasons that his last relationship had imploded. His now ex, but then boyfriend of two fucking years of his life - _God, why did he waste himself on that asshole for so long?_ \- dumped him for being too needy. Because he'd wanted to celebrate on their two year anniversary. And because he'd casually asked about them having lunch with his family - together, as a couple - while they were in town for a short visit. 

He'd been careful, this time, to plan his family's two-day trip for the one week that Hansol had told him he'd be slammed all week. Hansol was helping Jihoon record for a new group and would be doing most of the post-production editing himself in the upcoming weeks. He was really excited about the new responsibilities Jihoon was giving him, even though it meant he'd have to spend more time physically at the studio and less time on his own equipment working on his own music. Seungkwan had thought it was the perfect time for him to catch up with the ladies in his life, and had been careful to not even mention it to his boyfriend, so that there wouldn't be any chance of misunderstanding. 

And now, in the span of a single minute, he'd managed the one-two punch of both topics! Fuuuuuuuuck. He tried to modulate his voice, to stay outwardly unaffected, like Hansol. He kept his eyes glued to the show, but no longer had any idea what Park Bo Gum was talking about on-screen. "Yeah, Jinseol needed to do some shopping, so they came in on short notice." He didn't mention that he'd also met them for lunch and facials at Seokmin’s new spa the day before - when they'd first arrived - for breakfast that morning, and then spent the day shopping with them in addition to the lunch that Soonyoung had witnessed. Because, shit, if two years was too soon to meet the family, then six months was certainly too soon to even have a conversation about it. 

The swirling motion on his fingernail stilled for a moment, then resumed as Hansol said, "Wow, a day trip from Jeju just to go shopping, huh?"

And fuck it, Seungkwan hated lying. Hated liars. He answered honestly, "They flew in yesterday.” Then, to be sure it was clear that he didn't expect Hansol to meet them - because, obviously, he'd made no such demand tonight - he added, “And they're leaving tomorrow morning."

Hansol gave up all pretense of watching TV, or of wanting to continue cuddling, or of not being ticked off - like Seungkwan had already known was the case, but had hoped he was wrong. He stood up, displacing Seungkwan onto the couch cushions unceremoniously, and stalked off to the kitchen. He fixed a glass of water, drank it all in one go, and then, running his hands through his hair the way he subconsciously did whenever he was stressed, had announced, "I'm too tired to watch any more. Do you mind if we go to sleep now?" Glancing sideways at the bedroom door, he added, "Or, you can…umm…keep watching if you want. I'm just gunna…" He pointed vaguely in the direction of Seungkwan's room, never meeting Seungkwan's eyes, and finished on a breath, "... yeah…."

It took Seungkwan an entire twenty minutes to stop the silent tears that were falling down his cheeks. Another ten minutes to decide that he didn't care if Hansol's final sentence had meant that he actually didn't _want_ Seungkwan to come to bed with him. And three more to shut off the TV, make sure the front door was locked, and turn off lights on the way to the bedroom. He was grateful that they'd already brushed their teeth and finished their skincare routines - an intricate ten-steps for him and perhaps two steps for Hansol if he's being generous - before watching TV.

When he slipped into bed, he felt Hansol tense up, knew he wasn't actually asleep, but had no idea what to say to make things better. How do you apologize for who you are? 

Because Seungkwan _is_ a bit needy. He's demanding and dramatic and very much into celebrating important milestones that seem ridiculous to other people. And unlike many guys his age, he adores his family. He adores his boyfriend even more. He absolutely can't wait until the day that he gets to introduce the most important people in his life to each other, but he knows he has to temper his excitement, to operate on other people's timelines. But…what could he even say to apologize for any of that? When something is such an integral part of you, apologizing for it seems disingenuous. 

So he settled for the most honest thing he could think to say, "I love you, Sollie. So much!" and then tried to convey that same message by wrapping himself around Hansol, his chest melded to his boyfriend's back, his hand pressed tightly against Hansol's heart. 

Hansol had replied, at least. A very quiet, suspiciously wet sounding, "You too, Kwanna." And the fact that he hadn't added the word love to his reply had seemed rather monumental at the moment. 

\---

It had seemed even more monumental this morning - Hansol's birthday - when Seungkwan woke up alone. Even though it was only six in the morning. 

Hansol never had to be in the studio that early. The fact that he was gone when Seungkwan woke up - the morning after that discussion - was obviously not a coincidence. Seungkwan tried his best not to cry. And if he stopped trying so hard while he was showering, well, even he couldn't differentiate the tears from the water raining down on him. 

\---

He'd already had plans to meet his family for breakfast before they had to leave for the airport. And he didn't want them to be worried about him when they headed home to Jeju. So, even though he felt crushed, he went through the motions of getting ready and trudged to the cafe to meet them.

He made sure to put on a fake smile before even entering the cafe and to greet his family with his usual exuberance. But of course his eomma knew him too well for that. The moment he hugged her good morning, she pulled back from the hug just enough to get a look at his face. 

“Baby, what's wrong? Have you been crying?”

And that had quickly degenerated into Seungkwan flopping dramatically into the free seat at the table, dropping his head onto his arms, and sobbing, “Eomma, I think I messed up!!” He spilled the whole story, finishing with, “I can't lose him, Eomma. I know it's only been six months, but he means so much to me already!”

His eomma ran her fingers gently through his hair, then rubbed comforting circles on his back. “Oh, my sweet boy. I think you're right that you've made a mistake, just not the one that you think you've made.”

He didn't lift his head up from the table, just mumbled, wallowing in his misery. “What do you mean, Eomma?”

“I mean that if this Hansol is anything like you've told me, if he's deserving of your love, then he's nothing like _he who must not be named_ and so you shouldn't let your interactions with Hansol be guided by the insecurities that _he_ instilled in you.” She leaned over and hugged Seungkwan. “Baby, just talk to him. Maybe you've misunderstood the situation. Or maybe he has. But either way, you won't know until you two talk things through.”

It was good advice, and Seungkwan had felt enough better to have an iced Americano and a few nibbles of the fruit and yogurt bowl his eomma bought for him. Even Jinseol and Sojeong had taken his plight seriously enough that they didn't tease him for having a dramatic outburst in public, opting instead to pat him on the back (Jinseol) and hold his hand on top of the table (Sojeong).

After breakfast, he hugged his mother and sisters before helping them into an Uber headed for the airport, feeling lighter than he had all day. Which was telling, because usually the sadness of them leaving would put him in a bit of a funk for a day or two. But today, the hope that he and Hansol would work things out cut through that dull ache. 

Standing there on the sidewalk, watching until the taillights of the Uber disappeared around a corner, he realized that he didn't want to wait until Hansol was done with work to talk things out. He really wanted to talk to him _right now_. He pulled out his phone, but then felt silly as he pondered what to write… because Hansol was busy. This week was one of the most important weeks in his career so far, and Seungkwan couldn't risk doing anything to mess that up, or he really would be being needy and dramatic - in ways that weren't cute or sweet - in ways that were annoying and cause for relationships to end. 

He settled for a quick selfie with a peace sign over one eye, and a simple "Happy Birthday! I love you!!" And then added, "Hope you're having a great morning so far!" for good measure. 

Just as he was about to put the phone away, it vibrated in his hand - too soon to be a reply from Hansol. It was instead from Hansol's roommate - which was odd because although he and Soonyoung got along great, they really didn't text each other. 

Soonyoung: Can you meet me at this address in fifteen minutes? It's for a birthday surprise for Hansol. 

Seungkwan mapped the address before replying. It was just a short walk from the cafe.

Seungkwan: Sure. Be there in ten. 

Soonyoung: Great thanks! Rawr!

OK, the rawr was a bit weird. Seungkwan knew that Soonyoung's stage name as a dancer was Hoshi - an odd pun about a tiger's gaze - but still...rawr? He chuckled as he walked, wondering how strange Soonyoung was around the apartment with Hansol if he was this weird with people he didn't know all that well. 

\---

When Seungkwan arrived at the address, there was no sign of Soonyoung, so he pulled out his phone to see if Hansol had replied. But no such luck. He sent a text to his eomma "Have a safe flight! Saranghaeyo Eomma!!" And while his attention was focused on the phone, a black bag slipped over his head from behind and his arms were quickly grabbed and secured together behind his back. 

He tried to scream, but as soon as he opened his mouth, something was tied around his head on the outside of the bag, filling his mouth with the cloth of the bag plus the bulk of whatever had been tied. He tried to kick, to thrash, anything to prevent himself from being … oh my God … nothing he did was working. He was being abducted!!

He was hoisted off the ground, his legs held tightly and then fastened together with what sounded like duct tape. Then hands wrapped around him, maneuvering him as if he weighed nothing at all. A soft voice whispered in his ear, "Calm down. Everything's gunna be OK. I promise."

How could everything - anything - be OK when he was being abducted??

They didn't carry him far - possibly just into the building that he was standing in front of - before they plopped him onto a chair and adjusted his bindings so that he was attached to it. To be fair, they did seem to put a bit of effort into ensuring that he was somewhat comfortable, not that it mattered too much in the scheme of things… they were still abducting him regardless of how much padding they added to the bindings to keep them from chafing. 

He heard several clicks of a digital camera - probably a phone - what in the world were they doing with those photos? - then the binding around his mouth was removed, and after another moment or two, the sound of their footsteps as they left the room, with noises that sounded like someone was fiddling with things on the way out. 

\---

Which brings him full circle to the present moment - sitting here, tied to a chair, filled with self pity about the worst day of his entire life! He doesn't even have to think 'worst day that he can remember' because nothing tops the past twenty-four hours. Or bottoms it. Or...whatever.

Seungkwan is glad that his abductors left the room, though. It will give him a chance to try to get free. He can't be abducted on Hansol's birthday! He can't just disappear from his boyfriend's life without a word after the night they'd had last night. And oh God, his eomma will be devastated! 

No, he has to get free. He begins struggling against his bonds in earnest, no idea when his captors will return.


	2. Hansol

Hansol hums as he locks up Woozi’s studio. He's had a great morning! The group they've been recording has very catchy songs, although he isn't sure how much of that is thanks to Woozi's genius or ideas the band brought with them. Plus, because of his brilliant idea to head into the studio at five in the morning - and the band members’ willingness to meet him a few hours later (but much earlier than usual) for the final rerecordings that needed to be done before he can start post production - he's already finished at eleven and ready to spend the rest of his birthday making up with his boyfriend. 

And he is _so_ ready for that! He feels like a total ass when he thinks about how he reacted last night, but he knows he and Seungkwan will work through it easily today once he explains. 

And apologizes. 

As he walks toward the bus stop, he pulls out his phone for the first time all day. He's been so busy he hasn't even spared a moment for anything other than focusing on prepping for recording and then the recording session itself. He has three new messages.

He clicks on the ones from his boyfriend first, and is rewarded with a cute selfie.

Seungkwan: Happy Birthday! I love you!! 

Seungkwan: Hope you're having a great morning so far!

He knows the wide smile on his face probably looks goofy, but doesn't really care. He's so head over heels for his boyfriend that even a sweet message - nothing particularly special about it - is enough to send his mood skyrocketing.

The third message is from an unknown sender. He clicks on it, and would swear that all of the sound and color just drained from the world around him.

Unknown: We have your boyfriend. Come alone and everything will be OK.

There’s an address. And a photo of someone tied to a chair with a bag over his head. Honestly, it could be anyone...except that the someone is wearing the exact same shirt Seungkwan had on in the photo Hansol was just smiling over.

Hansol maps the address and starts running. 

He makes it several blocks, many minutes later, before his brain has rebooted and begun to actually process the situation. He's idiotically running straight into a trap without trying to think things through at all. But he's smarter than that. Right? 

He slows to a brisk walk, breathing heavily and still heading straight for the address, but giving himself time to make some smart decisions before he arrives.

First, he calls Seungkwan. If his boyfriend answers, then everything will be fine. Maybe this is just an elaborate prank, right?

“Pick up. Pick up. Pick up!! Dammit!!!” He tries two more times, wanting to cling to the hope that this isn't actually happening.

Next, he calls Soonyoung. OK, his roommate probably isn't going to be much help in a situation like this, but at the very least, he'd like for _someone_ to know where he is, in case things don't work out. Soonyoung doesn't answer either, but honestly, that happens most of the time. He's usually too busy dancing or teaching dance or thinking about dancing to answer when anyone calls.

He tries Jihoon. No answer. This is getting ridiculous. He leaves a message. It's probably too cryptic to really help if Hansol and Seungkwan both disappear forever, but he gives the address, so at least there's that.

“Seokmin!” He dials Seungkwan's best friend, hoping to find that the two are hanging out, giggling over whatever inane subject they've decided to fixate on today. He answers on the first ring.

“Hansolie!! Are you at home?”

“What? No, I'm... Hyung, please tell me that you're with Seungkwan right now.”

“I'm not. He was going to breakfast with his family this morning. Do you know where Soonyoung is?”

“Oh thank God! It's only eleven.” He's probably still with them. That would explain why he isn't answering his phone, as well. “Hyung, do you have Mrs. Boo’s number?” 

“Umm. No? She wouldn't be able to answer now anyway. Their flight was supposed to leave at ten past ten. But...is Soonyoung…”

“Shit!!! Sorry. I'm going to try to call him again.” Hansol hangs up on Seokmin and dials Seungkwan again. And again. And again. And again.

In the middle of the fourth try, his phone pings with an incoming text.

Seungkwan: Don't be like that. You have to play the game to get him back.

What the fuck! Now they have Seungkwan’s phone too??

All Hansol can think about now is some sick wacko toying with them like The Trickster in Flash. Someone who gets his kicks by torturing others.

His phone pings again before he can work himself up any more.

Seungkwan: It'll be fun. I promise.

“Fun for who, you sicko?”

Without making a conscious decision to do so, he is again running - as fast as his feet will carry him - because, dammit, he cannot leave Seungkwan to face this guy alone for a second longer. 

He skids to a stop on the sidewalk when his phone alerts him that he's reached his destination, taking stock quickly before he barges in without a plan. 

It's a huge, three story Victorian house - dark blue with tons of elaborate white trim - with a large yard and a wrought iron fence marking the perimeter. It is very oddly out of place in this area that is otherwise filled with high rise buildings, and although it appears well maintained, it makes him think of haunted mansions in movies. Good thing it is mid-morning, because he really doesn't need the addition of a scary haunted house to make today any worse. 

The gate is ajar, wide enough for him to enter without touching it, but not completely open. Somehow even that feels ominous. 

He takes a deep breath, steeling himself for whatever is going to happen when he gets inside. But just as he takes his first step toward the gate, a car screeches to a stop behind him.

An Uber. 

Seokmin tumbles out of the back passenger door, thanking the driver, gathering himself as if preparing to take off at a run, and then startling to a stop when he sees Hansol staring at him.

“Oh, Hansolie, thank God you're here. Did they contact you too? I don't think I could do this alone.”

“Seokmin?” Hansol is very confused. He takes a moment before continuing. “Why didn't you tell me they'd contacted you when I asked about Seungkwan?”

“What about Seungkwan? Soonyoung is in there!” 

“Why...why would they text you about Soonyoung instead of me? I'm his roommate…” Seokmin's abashed blush is all the answer he needs. He doesn't even bother to ask, doesn't need more details right now. But later, once they're all safe… “Alright. We're going to do this together.”

“I'm really glad you're here with me, Hansol. I was scared about going in there by myself.”

Hansol is still scared about going in there, but he isn't going to say so and make Seokmin feel worse. “But you were heading in there anyway, Seokmin hyung, and that's the real definition of bravery." 

His words seem to have given Seokmin some much needed strength, as he straightens his shoulders and finds the courage to look directly at the house for the first time. 

"Well, no time like the present, as the saying goes. Ready?”


	3. Seungkwan

After several minutes of struggling with the bindings, he's convinced that he has no chance whatsoever of getting himself free. He chastises himself for not doing enough strength training...although, at this point it has been several days since he's even exercised. Between freaking out that his family was coming to visit and then enjoying their visit, he hasn't had any spare time to play Beat Saber, much less record a new video or work on any of his WIP maps. His followers are going to think he's fallen off the face of the planet. 

Which… considering his current predicament… might not be too far off. 

He sighs, feeling his bottom lip tremble as tears begin to form. He preferred worrying about the comparatively trivial matter of YouTube viewers to coming back around to the reality of his situation.

And although he'd been glad, at first, to be left alone, now, sitting here with the darkness of a black bag over his head, he's starting to crave company. Any company. Even if it is the company of his abductors. Oh God, he's already getting Stockholm Syndrome and he's only been in captivity for half an hour at the most. 

"Hello?" His voice sounds so pitiful. Tiny. Very unlike his usual boisterous tone that his friends sometimes tease would be better on a stage than wasted on YouTube videos. He yelps, feeling like he might have just almost had a heart attack - a miniature one, at least - when a voice responds from a few feet away from him. 

"Seungkwan? Is that you?"

"Oh God! Soonyoung? They got you too? Oh my God! We have to get out of here!"

"Is that what you've been doing? All that rustling and grunting and shuffling around over there?"

Seungkwan ignores the question, coming up with a brilliant idea. "Hey, we can tip our chairs over, untie each other, and then press against each other to leverage ourselves to stand up. I've seen it in movies. Ready?"

Soonyoung is apparently ignoring him too. "Why did you text me to meet you here?" It's like they're having completely different conversations right now. How could he possibly be so calm while they're tied up? 

Wait. 

What? 

"What? You texted me to meet you here! You even added a ridiculous ‘rawr’ at the end of the message. That's how I was sure it was you...Hansol has told me all about your tiger agenda, or whatever you call it."

“It isn't an agenda. And I have never in my life added ‘rawr’ to the end of a text. And you distinctly texted me and asked me if I could help you with a surprise for Seokmin’s birthday."

"Oh God! I really didn't, hyung!”

But Soonyoung isn't finished. “Rawr would be ludicrous because that's what a closet monster says, not a tiger.”

“Right, because closet monsters are a thing that exists. And that we need to be thinking about right now.” He wishes that closet monsters were his biggest concern right now. “Someone must have texted us both to get us here. What the hell is going on? They mentioned Hansol and Seokmin in our texts. Do you think they're going to try to abduct them too? We have to get out of here!" He's pretty sure he's about to hyperventilate. "Ready to tip your chair over and try to untie each other? On three. One. Two. Three." Seungkwan throws all of his weight to the side, and just barely manages to tip the chair over towards Soonyoung. He lands hard, most of the impact on his shoulder, and he's sure it's going to leave a terrible bruise if not worse. But it will be worth damaging his arm to get out of here. 

He doesn't hear Soonyoung land next to him. "Hyung?" 

"What are you doing, Kwanna? You do realize that our legs are duct taped to the chair and our hands are duct taped together. There's no way for us to get close enough to undo each other and stand up. And even if we could get close, there are several layers of duct tape. That shit’s a bitch to get off. We're going to need scissors or a knife to get free."

"You could have mentioned that _before_ I threw myself onto the ground!"

Worst fucking day ever!


	4. Hansol

As they walk towards the front door, Hansol is surprised to feel his boyfriend's best friend slip his hand into Hansol's. But from the way he's cowering behind him as they walk, he's certain that Seokmin is only looking for reassurance, not anything inappropriate. 

With his free hand, he reaches out to ring the doorbell, still wondering if he's being completely idiotic to be here. 

Although the house looks Victorian, it apparently has had a technological overhaul, as the doorbell has a video screen above it. As soon as Hansol presses the button, an image appears on the screen:

Enter your date of birth to enter.

Hansol looks around. There aren't any numbers on the doorbell, but the front door handle has a digital keypad. He presses 19980218. The lock doesn't budge. 980218. Still no good. 

“You said you received a text too? Let me see it.”

Seokmin shows him his phone, displaying a text almost identical to his, except with Soonyoung’s name and photo instead of Seungkwan’s. 

“Maybe the keypad is just set to 0218, since that would work for both of us? Without the year?” He tries it, and the lock whirs as it rotates.

Hansol opens the door and they step into a small foyer with floor to ceiling leaded glass windows on either side of a leaded glass door. The glass is so thick and cloudy that they can't see anything but blurs of color from the other side.

As the door shuts behind them, he hears the lock engage and considers checking to see if he can still unlock it and leave. But really, there's no chance of him doing that without Seungkwan and Soonyoung, so he doesn't even try.

He does try the knob on the inner door, but finds it's also locked. Unlike the front door, it hasn't been updated to have an electronic lock, instead appears to require a vintage skeleton key.

He knocks, both of them standing there trying to see whether anyone is moving inside the room, to no avail.

Hansol finally stops focusing on the glass and looks around the small space. Shelving is built into the side walls on both sides of the entry room. On one side, there are some potted plants and books on the upper shelves and a thin table blocking the lower ones. There's a strange wooden box on the table, with four indentations on the top and photos under each indentation on the side facing him. The first photo is of Seungkwan, then Hansol, Soonyoung, and Seokmin. 

Seungkwan isn't wearing the outfit he had on today, but Hansol recognizes it, then realizes that each of the photos is a candid shot from the party they attended last Friday night. It was an intimate party - just their closest friends, a merging of his friend group and Seungkwan's that surprisingly all get along as if they've known each other forever - celebrating the youngest, Chan’s, birthday. He knows everyone who was at that party, everyone who would have been close enough to take these photos. 

And that kind of freaks him out for a moment. Was someone stalking his friends? Were they being watched that night?

But then he realizes that anyone who could pull off this elaborate abduction could have easily hacked into their phones and computers to get those photos. And besides…would being watched really be much different from the situation they're in right now? Maybe less terrible, since at least Seungkwan and Soonyoung wouldn't be in captivity, even if being watched would be terribly creepy. 

He turns to the bookshelf on the other wall, which is so filled with colorful bottles that it looks like it belongs in a dusty old potion shop in the Wizarding world. Some of the bottles have metal trim in lacy patterns and others have multicolor swirls of liquid that sit on top of each other without combining.

In the center of the middle shelf, there's a framed note. He reads it once in his head, then repeats it out loud.

Nothing is easy 

In this exit-less, maze-like world 

For now, I just kept it simple simple 

You have but one chance 

Find yourselves to find your friends 

Hansol scans the bottles - potions - reciting the words in his head. 

“What do you think it means?” Seokmin is wide-eyed, still staring at the note, eyes flicking across the words over and over again.

Hansol isn't really sure, yet, not enough to answer Seokmin. So he doesn't. He keeps scanning. Until he sees a bottle filled with a golden orange gel, so brightly colored that it's almost as if rays of sunshine have been suspended within it. He picks it up. It has slivers of orange peel embedded in the gel. When he pulls out the cork and sniffs, a shudder of comfort wracks his body - ever since the day he met Seungkwan, the smell of Jeju oranges rocketed to the top of his list of favorite smells. And now, they smell like love. Like home.

“I think … I, ummm. I think we're supposed to find the potions that represent us? And. Uh. I guess, put them into the slots on that box.” He gestures with his head towards the box. The slots do seem to be the right sizes for the bottoms of the bottles to fit into. “I think this one is Seungkwan’s. But.” He rereads the instruction. “Only one chance. So just. Set it on the table for now?”

“Ohhh.” Seokmin nods sagely, over-exaggeratedly, then takes the orange bottle from Hansol gingerly, obviously worried that he might drop it, obviously still frightened of everything in this place.

And noticing that, Hansol realizes that he isn't. The mental challenge of this game (and maybe the smell of Jeju oranges) has steadied his nerves a bit. If Seungkwan and Soonyoung's safety is dependent on him using logic, well, at least that is something that he can control, something that he feels confident about.

As Seokmin begins pulling out potions, sniffing them, and then putting them back on the shelf, Hansol goes back to the task as well. It doesn't take long to spot one that has deep orange and black striations, very much like tiger stripes. He grabs it and holds it up triumphantly, announcing, “Soonyoung!” 

Seokmin giggles. “Oh yes! Definitely!” He takes it, unstoppers the bottle and sniffs experimentally, shrugs, and replaces the cork.

“What did it smell like?” Despite the importance of their task, and the feeling that he should hurry to get to Seungkwan, he can't resist asking, even as his attention goes back to the potions.

“Umm. Nothing?” The way he says it, almost like a question, tells Hansol that there will be more to his answer if he's patient. And he always is. He's finished looking at every bottle on the top three shelves before Seokmin continues. “It kind of smelled salty, like maybe the ocean. But not really. More like...sweat. But clean. Like if the person sweats so much that they weren't sweating out impurities anymore, just pure, untainted...body water.”

“Body water?” Hansol laughs as he bends a bit to see the bottles at the back of the next shelf down. “You're almost as weird as he is. No wonder you two are…” Shit. Seokmin's eyes fill with tears. He'd almost forgotten why they were here. Was actually, kind of, enjoying himself. Getting to know his boyfriend's best friend a bit better. They'd never hung out without Seungkwan before. But somehow, his words had reminded both of them, almost simultaneously, of the predicament their friends were in. Their loves. At least in Hansol’s case. Maybe Seokmin's too, if he's reading him correctly.

One of the potion bottles, tucked in the shadows of the back corner of the bottom shelf catches his eye. It is a dark pink and is filled with… something. He pulls it out to get a better look. “What in the world…”

“Pepperoni!!!” Seokmin practically shouts the word, grabbing the bottle from Hansol and pulling the cork out. “ Mmm, smells like pijja!! This one is mine.”

“Well...OK then.” He hadn't realized that Seokmin was so into pepperoni pizza, but is glad to have found the third bottle. The only one left now is his own and nothing has jumped out as representing him so far...and he's already looked at every single bottle.

Seokmin pulls out an extremely colorful potion, saying excitedly, “Do you think this one is yours?”

It has silver musical notes suspended throughout the liquid, which almost looks like a lava lamp, with the way multisized blobs of color are floating around. “Why would that one represent me?” 

“It...umm...looks kinda like...tie dye to me? And umm...I dunno. Seungkwan sometimes mentions that you… wear that?” Seokmin sounds like he's worried this will somehow offend Hansol, but he already knows how much Seungkwan hates tie dye, how much he makes fun of Hansol's taste in clothes because of his penchant for wearing colors and patterns that don't quite go together. 

But honestly, the pattern of colors in the bottle doesn't look much like tie dye to Hansol, and he can't imagine that musical notes represent _him_ when Seungkwan has such a beautiful singing voice. Seokmin and Soonyoung both have prettier voices than his as well. And his musical abilities as a writer and producer pale significantly in comparison to Jihoon's, so all in all, he's certain that he's the least likely one of them all to be represented by musical notes. He just isn't that talented. 

He's starting to wonder if maybe the bottle with oranges might be the one for him, since he's so enamored with the smell now, and then that would free up the bottle with musical notes to be Seungkwan's. 

Of course, that discounts the fact that Seungkwan would never be caught dead in the array of colors in that bottle.

While he's internally delving through all of these thoughts and possibilities, Seokmin grabs the bottle in question and… without any concern for all of Hansol's unspoken reasons why that bottle couldn't possibly be the right one for him… places it into the slot above Hansol's picture. 

Hansol, usually calm and collected, freaks! "Oh Shit! No! We only have one chance to get it right, and that…." His words trail off as he realizes that it's too late to change it. "That one can't be me." 

But Seokmin's sunny smile doesn't slip a bit as he replies, "Sure it is. That one has to be yours." He places the other bottles into their slots one by one, and then twists and tugs on the knob at the end of the box. 

To Hansol's surprise, the knob pulls out of the box, trailed by a thick wooden dowel attached to the center of the knob. A small compartment inside the dowel is revealed, with an ornate brass skeleton key inside that matches the pattern of the door knob. 

Huh. Maybe he doesn't give himself enough credit. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The clue takes lyrics from Woozi's solo song Simple
> 
> The box with bottles that unlock it was inspired by this escape room: 
> 
> https://www.epbot.com/2018/12/full-walk-through-our-harry-potter.html
> 
> Magnets in the bottom of the bottles shift thin boards inside the box to allow the dowel to be pulled out.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!!!


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